# Obama does his best to degrade a couple of Marines. Next episode: Wipers! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 16, 2013, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538 "2013-05-16T18:51:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/121 "2013-05-16T23:12:08Z")
Silly, of course we want the Marines to hold umbrellas over Barack Obama. Because, golly, he’s the Messiah. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/122 "2013-05-16T23:17:25Z")
I found a video of the event [here](http://www.anyclip.com/movies/dune/ending/). But it cuts right before the marines come up with the umbrellas. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Fun\_Ball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_fun_ball/32/17664_2.png) [@Happy\_Fun\_Ball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Fun_Ball)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/123 "2013-05-16T23:17:32Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > You’re a fucking moron. The Marines are under strict protocol orders from their superiors. Probably something like: When it rains, hold an umbrella over the president with your hand placed horizontally over your belt line. They drill on this stuff; it ain’t spontaneous, and you’re a fucking tool for being outraged over it. You do realize that Obama is black right? And the marines are white? Am I being obtuse or do you really not see the problem? This post is just a joke! But, seriously, I do believe that a lot of the criticism aimed at Obama is due to his race. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/124 "2013-05-16T23:23:09Z")
> [@boytyperanma](#): > > Marines just aren’t qualified to do menial labor in your book? No digging trenches or shoveling shit for those guys? If this trend continues we’ll have them standing around the tomb of some nameless soldier. Hey, that’s the Army’s job! ---
**Author:** ![Truman\_Burbank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@Truman\_Burbank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Truman_Burbank)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/125 "2013-05-16T23:25:00Z")
> [@Slithy\_Tove](#): > > Silly, of course we want the Marines to hold umbrellas over Barack Obama. > > Because, golly, he’s the Messiah. Well, no, dipshit, because he’s the _President_, and when the President is a Republican your political stripe is always talking about ‘respecting the Office’, but your partisan memory (and standards) are short. Only Republicans seem to insist that Obama is the Messiah, which always strikes me to be both odd and somewhat sacriligious. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/126 "2013-05-16T23:29:51Z")
> [@](#): > > … that a lot of the criticism aimed at Obama is due to his race. Well, yes and no. We’ve gotten to the point where very few people will admit to any racial prejudice. But he represents _change_ more than anything else, and that is uncomfortable for many people. My Texas uncles would have shit themselves, and I only wish they could have lived to see the day. ---
**Author:** ![Krav\_Manga](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/krav_manga/32/3153_2.png) [@Krav\_Manga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Krav_Manga)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/127 "2013-05-16T23:43:27Z")
Gee, my old man had a driver and a batman when he was a lowly LtCol in the Australian army. The driver used to open the car door for him and everything! ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/128 "2013-05-16T23:45:31Z")
Heck, in 1997 I wandered into a Montana gun club and had an otherwise pleasant time until the conversation turned to politics. I thought Colin Powell was a viable candidate, mentioned him as a military veteran alternative to Bill Clinton (not popular locally, I gathered) and then tried not to react when a guy there said matter-of-fact that he “could never vote for a nigger”. There was another traveler there, a guy from New Jersey. He and I shared a few moments of “what the heck was THAT?” in the parking lot as we walked to our cars. The Montana guy was in his early fifties, I guess. Probably still alive. I wonder what he thought in 2008. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/129 "2013-05-16T23:49:35Z")
It had to be Marines holding those umbrellas. Nerd’s arms would have gave out in less than a minute. And _then_ where would we be? Seriously, my arm gets tired even thinking about that picture ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/130 "2013-05-16T23:56:33Z")
I don’t think Messiahs get rained on in the first place, so I guess that answers **that** question. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/131 "2013-05-16T23:58:59Z")
> [@Truman\_Burbank](#): > > Well, no, dipshit, because he’s the _President_, and when the President is a Republican your political stripe is always talking about ‘respecting the Office’, but your partisan memory (and standards) are short. Only Republicans seem to insist that Obama is the Messiah, which always strikes me to be both odd and somewhat sacriligious. Ha ha ha ha _whoosh!_, ah, good times! ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2013, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/132 "2013-05-17T00:04:32Z")
were these pretend dress-up Marines? if so then i would think it unfair. if these were actual Marines that got training outdoors and occasionally get a little wet then this would probably be light duty. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2013, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/133 "2013-05-17T00:21:59Z")
Those colors don’t run! ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2013, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/134 "2013-05-17T00:25:16Z")
> [@johnpost](#): > > were these pretend dress-up Marines? if so then i would think it unfair. :dubious: Where do you get “pretend dress-up Marines”, outside of a Broadway production of _South Pacific_ or some such? I was not aware that “pretend Marines” were allowed to wear actual USMC uniforms, much less serve in the Marine Security Guard Battalion that acts as a Presidential guard of honor. ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2013, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/135 "2013-05-17T00:27:49Z")
Folks, those guys were already standing in the rain. They had umbrellas ready to deploy. Their CiC ordered them to deploy them. They did so. Effectively. I must say that the OP while never having that stellar of a posting history has reached a new nadir in his feigned outrage schtick. This is the kind of polemic that has poisoned the well of American politics for too many years now. Is it possible to do a ‘reset’ and get back to relatively amiable terms with each other? This is becoming tiresome and I am not alone in saying so. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2013, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/136 "2013-05-17T00:33:32Z")
> [@Bayard](#): > > Yeah, I watched the clip, and after the President asked for umbrellas, it took all of 17 seconds for the two Marines to show up with identical pristine umbrellas. One might be tempted to think that they had them at the ready for just such an occassion. So they’re not so much soldiers as Batmen, then. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2013, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/137 "2013-05-17T00:36:38Z")
> [@Gagundathar](#): > > Folks, those guys were already standing in the rain. They had umbrellas ready to deploy. Their CiC ordered them to deploy them. They did so. Effectively. Until the drone umbrella program is ready, they’ll have to do. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2013, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/138 "2013-05-17T00:42:07Z")
> [@The\_Tooth](#): > > So they’re not so much soldiers as Batmen, then. God damn! ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2013, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/139 "2013-05-17T00:48:09Z")
> [@Krav\_Manga](#): > > Gee, my old man had a driver and a batman when he was a lowly LtCol in the Australian army. The driver used to open the car door for him and everything! Well, that’s cuz Australia is a Comm’mist Socialist Monarchy! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2013, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538/140 "2013-05-17T01:21:27Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Ordering a Marine to do it gets the job done instantly, without argument, and efficiently. Look at those two corporals. They are dignified, at attention and do not detract from the press conference in the slightest manner. No intern could do it half as well. Fuck that, **silenus**! What those two red-white-and-blue Devil Dogs have gone and done is thrown down the gauntlet on the rest of the fucking world! You wanna get an umbrella held right? You call a born-and-bred, tried-and-true, Semper-fucking-Fi US Marine!\* USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! Seriously, man. Ex-military (US Navy) here. Ceremonial guys get asked to do stuff like this all the time by people a WHOLE lot lower ranked than POTUS. If I were one of those boys, I would ask AP for the hi-res original and get a friggin’ poster made of it. - All kidding aside, they do look pretty damn spit-and-polish up there. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-does-his-best-to-degrade-a-couple-of-marines-next-episode-wipers/658538.md?page=8)